Mystery power jolt surprises subdivision

MINNEOLA - Julian Andrews heard an explosion and saw a light flash through his bathroom window early Wednesday. He went outside and saw a charred spot on the side of his house, near the breaker box.

"Some of my electronic things did not work any more," said Andrews, 74. "In a few minutes, SECO and people were all over the place."

Andrews' home and about 84 other residences in Chelsea Parc received a jolt Wednesday morning when an electrical surge charged through the subdivision. Their homes receive power from Sumter Electric Cooperative, which was still investigating the cause of the surge late this week.

The incident left residents without electricity until about 5:30.p.m. Wednesday, said Barry Bowman, SECO's communications director.

But many people are still left with the damage caused by the surge.

A total dollar figure for all the devices damaged was not available, but two residents reported losses of less than $500 and several thousand dollars.

Stephen Gruss, a Chelsea Parc resident of 13 years, said he lost about $6,000 worth of electronics in the surge, including three television sets and a hot tub.

"It literally melted the plug," said Gruss, 71, referring to his spa.

Part of his house also may need repainting, he said, because the surge blew the electrical panel outside and scorched the side of the house.

Andrews, on the other hand, only had a few less-expensive items damaged and estimates their value at less than $500.

The surge probably was an accident, said Andrews, adding that he is impressed with SECO's response.

"There was really good service of getting everything back together," Andrews said.

But Gruss said he suspects the surge was a result of carelessness or a mistake. Still, Gruss said he is relieved that no one in the neighborhood was injured.

"We were just lucky no one got hurt because a lot of people were in their homes," he said.

Bowman said SECO is still unsure what caused the surge, which occurred during a routine power upgrade.

"We're still investigating," he said Thursday. "We don't know if it was an equipment error or a human error."

SECO was trying to improve a power line's capacity when the surge shocked the homes in Chelsea Parc.

"We do conversions on a regular basis," Bowman said. "I've been here 13 years and this is the first time I've heard of this happening."

SECO sent insurance adjusters into the neighborhood Thursday and Friday to assess the damages. Those adjusters will report the electrical devices that were fried to SECO, and SECO will cut checks for its customers who lost property.

"That way they'll get full value, which means essentially they're not getting a pro rata reimbursement," Bowman said.

But SECO doesn't know yet how much the incident will cost the company. "I'm imaging it's a considerable amount of money, but there's no way to detail that," he said.

While residents were without power Wednesday, SECO employees and Minneola Mayor David Yeager went door-to-door throughout the neighborhood to check on residents.

"The reason I went was to make sure the people had comfort," Yeager said. "It went exactly how it should go and we were right there and prepared."

Yeager attributed the patience of Chelsea Parc's residents to Wednesday's mild temperatures. Some, he said, took their lawn chairs and sat outside to enjoy the weather, while waiting for the power come back on.